The Day She Was Never Saved
by LuckyBachi
Summary: Natsu and Lucy took on a dangerous mission, with some bad consequences; so it's up to Wendy to make sure things don't get worse.
1. Chapter 1

They were good, even though he hated to admit it, it was the honest truth. These people… assassins they had so rudely labelled themselves… they were stealthy, nimble and clever. Not only that but they had also dragged two of Fairy Tail's guild members in to a place that made it more than difficult to call for help. And the Salamander and Celestial mage had been to naive in taking the bait. The pink haired mage hated it, but they really were falling behind in terms of succeeding; he was sightly impressed.

Whatever they had been hired for was obviously going to plan… but even saying that, what were they hired for? There were plenty of mage's they could have gone for; but for some reason they had chosen to hook Lucy and Natsu? It was still an impending question that lingered on the minds of both Guild members who were now being forced to fight a battle they had never even dreamed about this morning. Well at least… Lucy hadn't.

As much as Natsu enjoyed a fair challenge, being split up from his closest team mate was beginning to take a toll on his concern, making him nervous to want to check on her as they had been fighting for a while now. He could feel himself running low on magic, and with Lucy working with Celestial spirits; that sometimes sucked it out a little more intensely than ability type mages. So far so good; Lucy's end sounded calm; and he knew she was fighting for their right to win.

The fire mage was forced to pull his focus away from the safety for his friend, ducking last minute to avoid being slashed in the face by a long spiked, silver dagger; belonging to the assassin that had decided to taunt Natsu for the night. His hair whipped across his for het, it sitting arrayed like a threaded curtain across his forehead. Out in the woods the air was damp; its aroma tainted with blood and sweat.

"Tell me who you are!" Natsu demanded, his voice husky as he sprung into the air; fists blazing.

The assassin didn't reply; swiftly pulling Natsu down by the ankle and slamming him down towards a debris of rocks.

Pain coursed through his head as he practically fell back onto the dirt a little clumsily; finding that he could no longer hear Lucy as well as he could before. The pink mage brushed a hand across his own face; it face sticky from the carmine liquid that had taken a liking to his face; his opponent just waiting like it was Natsu's turn next.

But he took no notice, instead Natsu froze up; something dancing at his mind.

It didn't take long to realise that that Lucy had been hurt, somehow Natsu had sensed it so without even having to look; he could feel it. Like an energy inside of him had simmered inside him. He wasn't in the best position to turn around as it wasn't really the time to take the eyes of the enemy; but with Lucy quite possibly very hurt he had no choice. And just to make matters worse; they still hadn't managed to get in touch with Fairy Tail; soon enough things could get tricky… or perhaps it was already to late for that. It was bad enough that there had been no explanation for this fight. These assassins had approached with nothing such as a hello or a remark to state why they had even come in the first place. As much as he didn't like to admit that these guys might have the upper hand, it was his comrades that came first and he wasn't in the mood to prove who could knock who out first.

Finally there was a cry from where Lucy was and he no longer cared for his own enemy or health; his legs moving him quicker than ever in order to check on his perfect blonde friend with a fist that was ready to pummel whoever was fighting his team mate. The assassin against Lucy darting about with speed that seemed impossible; Natsu could barely keep his eyes on him; his glance instead settling on Lucy who was clutching her keys with nothing more than fear plastered upon her expression. Her brown eyes settled on Natsu, a quick look of hope to see his very face; her pupils heavy with worry that he wished she didn't feel.

"Natsu…" She mumbled, her eyes widening suddenly as he watched her face screw up in pain. That bastard… The assassin with despicable speed had stabbed Lucy in the stomach with his bare hand; Natsu only catching a glimpse as he had begun to run towards her with a shout of pure horror as the speedy hand thrusted through her abdomen like it were nothing more than a sheet of paper; and back out with a crimson read coating. Lucy whimpered, a disturbing sound to the salamander's ears; finally time beginning to move at a normal pace again.

Lucy gasped in pure surprise; her keys dropping out from her hands as she fell feeble to her knees, coughing blood.

Finally he reached her; her enemy seeming to disappear out of sight; he too dropping to the ground by her side, his breath shaky at what he had just saw, wishing a thousand times that it was in fact untrue.

His eyes swiftly scanned over her damaged body with a face of utter concern as his face paled. They both had wounds; Natsu had been slung at several times…but... This wasn't good… This was real. This was deep. This was Lucy… She hadn't been stabbed with a knife, she had been stabbed by someone's arm… These assassins meant business; they were insane...

"L-Lucy… Can you hear me?" His voice wavered; it sounded strange in the silence as he tried to not shed his anger into his words. The anger wasn't for her after all. She didn't need to hear such a thing.

"D-Don't worry...a- about me N-Natsu…I promise…I-I'm f-fine..." Though the blonde spluttered the words out, her chokes empty and painful to his ears. It was impossible to believe her, Natsu knew full well that she was lying; after all, her expression was full of pure agony no matter how much she tried to fake that tender smile.

His chapped hands hovered over her slightly; her regular gentle blue outfit now soaked in red; his fingers bouncing around trying to find a suitable place for him to pick her up. Natsu couldn't stand to see her in such a state, and he didn't want to cause her more pain; but he had to get her away before his assassin came back for the rest of his fight. She did not need to be a part of that.

"You're not… I'm gonna move you, okay?"

Lucy only nodded weakly in response; though her voice perked up after she realised something.

"M-my… keys…" She practically begged, weak with both her speech and face; her head hanging limp as she tried to glance towards her keys that gave her the power to summon spirits. But she was null of magic, it was obvious by how damaged she looked; despite her fresh wound.

Natsu nodded; scooping the keys up in his hands and finally settling on carrying her his usual way, under behind her back and under the knees.

Admittedly, even he was also running on left over fuel, these assassins had practically drained the two of them; just like he had suspected. His vision would be blurry if he wasn't so high on adrenalin. Nevertheless, he had to stow Lucy somewhere that he could take a better look at her wound; try and help her… despite barely knowing what to do…

Finally he gathered the guts to pick her up, a screech of pain released from her lips; Lucy's ribs aching. The thing that made Natsu quiver the most was the blood; it was everywhere.

He almost dropped her, shocked by her outburst of discomfort; but it was also from the cracking noise that seemed to protrude from her ribs; panic gently slipping down a little deeper. Though of course he wouldn't dare drop her and instead he only frowned with an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry…" He cautiously whispered, trying to be as delicate as he possibly could. Lucy looked so quiet, so pale. This was time wasting, he wasn't being quick enough! At that thought, finally he darted around the trees; settling to move behind some dregs of goodness knows what plants; his arms still holding her; worried that if he placed her down again, it would only cause her grief again.

The poor girl whimpered, baring her teeth… Think you idiot! He felt useless, watching his comrade suffer at the hands of the enemy; neither helping her nor taking vengeance as they spoke. When did he sit around and need to think...?! He had to think of a way to help...

"N-Natsu...I...I need you t-to.. I-I need you to burn my wound…" Lucy had said it so calmly, "Y-You Need to seal it..."

For some reason, hearing her ask that made him tense up. He could practically feel the amount of blood she was shedding and she was completely right. But burning it would hurt like hell and it was already sickening to see her like this. With a moment of silence, he delicately placed her back on the ground; it was surprising how gentle he could be.

"Lucy;" He spluttered; those onyx eyes glowing with worry, "that will hurt you a lot-…" She was already hurting so much… Those damn assassins… He was practically seething. Fired up was too light of a phrase; he felt genuinely pissed off.

Lucy winced as she touched the cold ground and looked up at Natsu's eyes, putting her hand weakly on his as if to tell him it was alright. She was asking him to burn her… to stop the bleeding… What if he hurt her more...

"I-I know...b-but I trust you...N-Natsu.."

Even in this sitiation when she felt so much pain; she was willing to endure even more of it...when she looked him in the eyes it looked nothing like she was scared of his flames. She trusted him. Pleaded for him to at least try.

He glanced over her again, an odd look on his face that could only really be described as fear. Not exactly the normal kind, but more so that he was worried of hurting her more. Though never the less, he simply nodded to her request; obedient to her wish.

How far were the rest of Fairy Tail? Did they even know Lucy and he were missing? By the time they get here it could be too late…

It was his left hand that lit up first, since the other hand was gently holding her hand still. At least then if it hurt, she had something to hold onto.

"Ready?" He asked, unable to control his eyes from glassing over a bit.

Lucy nodded. She was more than ready.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy nodded, it was obvious that she was trying to focus on something else, readying herself for the burning that would come.

Natsu could easily make his flames nothing but a warm sensation along the skin; that would have been an easy request. Though this... He would need to cauterise it with precision; anything to stop the bleeding of the disturbingly large wound broken into her fragile body would be difficult, sespecially as a fire mage; though if he left her any longer she would most nearly die of exsanguination.

It was sickeningly silent as he processed her request slowly before he finally having the guts to press down on her wound; his expression paling the second his magic scathed her skin. Cauterising was dangerous, and it was obvious that Lucy knew such a fact; she was just as clever as those assassins; but there were better things to think about and it was survival… Though this… it was certainly not a method for the faint of heart. Of course that was no challenge for Lucy, so the more worrying thing was her bodily condition rather than her mind.

Lucy cried out in pain, the sound making a dreadful shockwave down the fire mage's eardrums, her body tensing up as tears finally erupted from her eyes; grinning her teeth- bearing that pain she was probably close to passing out. She practically crushed Natsu's hand as she yelped out yet again; the pink mage begging that the bleeding would stop quickly. It looked like a murder scene; perhaps it was, but everything was all wrong. The wrong person was dying! No… He couldn't even think such a thing, Lucy couldn't die. This was Lucy! The Lucy who made it out of everything and bounced back twice as strong, the Lucy that wore a smile even at the darkest of times, the Lucy that had brought everyone together. Even in this state, Natsu's respect for her was heavy and he wished there was a faster way that he could flee her of her pain.

At her screams, first instinct was to pull away. This was different to how he normally used his fire powers; it was usually for destruction; Wendy was better at this sort of thing. If only they were here, things would have neem much easier. This was strenuous, he was forced to watch the damage up close despite his efforts. Making the flames hotter and heavier, he tried to finish as quickly as he could before finally flinging his arms back in a frightened manner.

"There-!" He practically shouted the word both in relief and exclamation; his eyes not leaving her sorry state and impressed that the bleeding had ceased despite the clots of red that now coaxed the two of them like a bucket of red paint. Lucy's breath was shaky, her head against the debris as if it were a pillow; Natsu felt as though he was holding his breath; and it wasn't until he took a messy breath out that he'd realised that was in fact true. Though there was nothing that could pull the sounds of her screams away from her tortured pain; that was busy repeating itself like a bell inside Natsu's head. He didn't like to see any of his friends like this, let alone Lucy.

Lucy panted heavily; she was sweating so it seemed but also those tears were still flowing down her face and collecting in the grass.

"T-Thank you.." She mumbled, her hand unsteadily moving towards her wound as if glad to know if was no longer weeping the red mess.

He glanced up slightly, his hand still unknowingly clamped onto hers despite her new loose grip; in all honesty, he wasn't sure what to do.

The assassins were still out there and by now trying to track down their whereabouts. Natsu wanted to finish his fight; Lucy's too; kick the bastard right in the gut; give him back what he dared to share with them; but even saying that, he couldn't leave her side given the state she was in.

Natsu glanced back at her, wiping a fresh tear that was streaming down her face, "I won't leave you, okay?"

The blonde just nodded and stubbornly tried to sit up. "Y-Yeah, we...- we have to finish t-the fight.."

Natsu moved his arm in front of her slightly; something that he had received so many times from Lucy and Erza; a sign to halt, "It's okay… don't move…"

"B...But.." She complained weakly, feeling incompetent. But she was in no fighting shape and as much as Natsu was willing to obey his friend; he wasn't going to let her get more hurt. A wound like that drained her strength, she was already out of magic. But he understood that she didn't want to lie in a corner and feel sorry for herself; she was so much stronger than that… And that was why he couldn't go off and fight either. Not until there was a way he could tell that Lucy was in fine hands.

"Lucy…" He knew exactly how it felt to want to keep fighting, but there was no way. "The rest of Fairy Tail will be here soon…" He spoke carefully, unusual for him. But it was obvious that he was hiding some kind of emotion for her sake; a little fidgety as he knelt beside her. It was an empty promise really, but he had faith that his Guild would join. This was not a battle they would lose. Giving up? Please, that wasn't a phrase understood in Fairy Tail.

"We can wait for them… Wendy can help you more than I can, and we can beat these guys…"

Who were they anyway, who had the guild pissed off so bad that they had to hire assassins that were so powerful? He hated to admit it, but it was true; they were strong. They certainly were high in numbers too. They still needed answers… Sitting about wasn't getting them anywhere and he hated Lucy feeling like this...

Lucy nodded weakly again and closed her eyes, he squeezed her hand slightly just to let her know he was still there. He kept watching her face uncertainly, listening out for any signs that enemies were around; or better yet; anything at all from outside. It was concerning; quiet. He didn't want her to fall asleep just in case she didn't wake back up… He wasn't good at the caring thing, like he cared a lot; but he wasn't sure what to do if she choked or anything. He was good at fighting, and he knew how to fix up wounds; but that didn't mean he was good with the concience of another. He pressed his lips together slightly, glancing between the entry way on guard, and back at Lucy to make sure she was still just resting.

Her skin was pale, cool. Natsu petted her hand slightly, noises growing ever so slightly outside. "…Lucy…"

Lucy coughed a bit, blood trickling from her lips; coating them like crimson paint...he may have sealed the outside wound; but she still was bleeding inside, the blood getting in her lungs.

"E-Erza... G...Gray.." The blonde whispered, only then did Natsu's hear the voices growing outside.

Though he didn't really care for who's voices they were, as he was a little more concerned about Lucy's bleeding; unsure of how to treat internal injuries. She had been stabbed through the chest… how did you fix that... And the worst thing was he DIDN'T know what to do, he felt completely useless to one of the few people he could safely call his favourite. "Careful-"

"N-...Nats…u…" She rolled over, wincing at her clumsiness; feeling and looking uncomfortable; nearing him.

He didn't move, unsure that if he did, it would knock her. If anything, he'd rather have her in his arms so that he could know she was breathing okay rather than just listening to her uneasy breaths. But that too put her at risk at pulling something. He brushed a lock of her hair from her eyes.

"I'm sorry…" She shivered, Natsu trying so desperately to spread all the possible heat to her as he could.

He frowned a little more, petting her arm gently; if Fairy Tail didn't get here soon, he was going to have to move her; her condition was getting worse, her breath was ragged and heavy, her skin was like ice, she shivered as if freezing to death yet she was sweating a lot.

Natsu pulled his arm out of her grip in order to prop her head up head up; Irritation making him tremble a little, attempting to pick her up as gently as his hands would let him. He had to find Wendy; Erza; Gray- anyone that knew how the hell—

He bared his teeth slightly, aggravated and slightly paranoid.

She stirred a bit, "N-Natsu…"

"….Lucy…"

Natsu wanted to say something but felt there was no point, he shouldn't keep making her talk, not in such a condition. Nevertheless, he attempted to lift her off the ground. He didn't have to look at her to know her face screwed up in pain and Natsu put his head slightly on hers, as if letting her know he was here. As he held her, he turned slightly to tug off his scarf; awkwardly wrapping around her wound. At least trying to bound the bones. He couldn't pick her up… not yet.

She simply stirred again and opened her eyes ever so slightly, repeatedly dozing off.

"Come on… come on…" He practically whispered the words; if he hadn't hesitated, he would have been carrying her back into the clearing they heard voices from.

"N-Natsu…." Lucy's voice was forcefully loud; but shaky. She looked up at the pink-haired boy with those dark mahogany eyes and smiled weakly.

He paused to look back at her, a rather shaky blink back as he felt something warm trickle down his cheek. They had to get back, he needed to help her; or a at least find someone who could…

"N...Nats...d-don't cry…" Her hand reached for his face; it caressing his cheek as she wiped the tear away; for some reason Lucy didn't smile like her usual self; and that made Natsu's heart sink a little.

He didn't even answer her, a clump stuck in his throat. Usually he would shout or tell her not to give up; but this had happened so quick and there was something different about it…

She was more than just his friend, she meant the world to him… She couldn't just leave…

He briefly broke thier eye contact, failing to follow her request as another tear trickled down to follow the last. Natsu wasn't going to let her just die, not before he got the chance to let her meet Igneel, not before he got the chance to read all of her stories, to go on a tonne more trips- not until the world was falling apart, because right now that was how he felt inside. How could she give him that smile and expect him to accept it? There was no way in hell. They were both getting back to the guild alive, and there if either one of them were going to die, he hoped it was him. Because Lucy didn't deserve it.

"...Natsu.." Her breath was getting slower, he could hear it stiffen.

"Don't… say sorry…"

If she died on him, there would only be one person sorry and that would be him for failing to help. And the idiot he was now was standing around making her feel worse. It was time to start moving, whether he could help being spotted or not he could worry about that AFTER he got her back.

"Na...t...su.. Please…S-show me that smile I love so much... W-We always have so much fun w-when we're together.." She choked as the sentence came to a close; her eyes dazed, wanting to close.

With a sorrowful look he took a shaky breath, wanting to shout at the world but not let her hear it. The fire inside him for once was nothing but a dim flicker. Then he glanced down a little and looked back at those now dim brown eyes of her; his teeth caving carefully to show her his smile. He tried so hard to hide his current guilt and the sick feeling that had made his heart feel like it had died, hoping that she could not see past that.

"We have lots more adventures Lucy… y-you've just got to stay with me... okay? Just keep looking at me, don't close your eyes, okay?"

She kept doing that awful goodbye smile as she cupped his cheek with her left hand.

"I'm sorry, Natsu... I-I think I c-can't go on adventures with you anymore…."

No… please…. don't…. She couldn't… she can't….

The sorrow in his eyes grew a little helpless; his legs automatically leading the way to run in the direction of the guild as he pressed her against himself; hoping that somehow his own body heat would miraculously keep her alive a little longer. He was holding his breath somewhat, the tears leaving at thier own will; adrenaline actually propelling him quite fast. He didn't care for anything else at that moment. Lucy…

"S-Since I've joined Fairy Tail...I-I've always had so much fun...I...have s-so many friends now... I'm...so happy..P-Please tell them I'm sorry...I always worry them so much... E-Everyone of Fairy Tail...I-...I love them like Family.." She closed her eyes, seeing all the memories she made with them.

The moment she said that, he practically dropped to his knees; completely stopped in his tracks; like every word she said broke him and made every tiny wound throb, made him wish a thousand times that he had been stabbed, not her-

"No, no- Lucy- Lucy; p-please, stay with me, keep- your eyes, keep them open—" His warm voice was no longer, instead it was a strained sob as he gently shook her. If only there was some kind of magic... but that was impossible, all he knew was fire magic and even that had done nothing. He pressed his face against hers, unable to help the tears falling onto her as he wept; not caring about such a thing.

She couldn't- "Please… stay- I love you, you can't leave, pl-please…" -

She opened her eyes again, widened ever so weakly at what he said, "N-Natsu..?" Now she shed tears too, she could no longer force herself to smile.

"Natsu...I...I- love you t-too… I-I'm s-scared…" She choked these words out between her sobbing and ragged breathing as she coughed up blood again.

"Shh-shh-" He felt sick to his stomach, unsure who he was even trying to hush. How far was the guild? How far had these stupid damn assassins drawn them out? Did the guild even know where they were? If felt like they didn't where was everyone?!

"Y-you won't die, I pr-" He couldn't lie to her, he had to be certain. "DAMMIT- I PROMISE, Y'HEAR? YOU'RE NOT DYING ON MY WATCH-"

"N-Natsu... Natsu...I want...I want you and e-everyone...to live happy lives.." She sobbed. "P-Please Natsu, if you ruin y-your life for a stupid thing l-like that I could never forgive myself.. P-Please Keep laughing carefree..Fight w-with the other guild members for fun.. G-Go on a-adventures.. A-And find I-Igneel too.. I-I know you will...S-So please be strong.."

What?

What was the point in all that if Lucy wasn't there with him? It was impossible for the guild to be like that- at least, it would be for him. If she died now, what the point… he will have failed her, even if she had not accepted his promise, it was one he had to fufill. - His head throbbed; so painfully loud that when he closed his eyes and reopened them, something inside them had changed. She was still so cold, she needed heating up… something… He had to do SoMethInG- With that, his glowed slightly, a fiery warm feeling engulfing them both as flames encased them. Using it like this would clealy drain his magic, but mp was something that could be renewed; unlike Lucy's life.

Maybe all she needed… it was childish to think so… there was nothing he could do, he was no doctor! He was no herbal alchemist! The least he could do was flood her veins with some kind of heat; something warm to calm her.

She smiled softly at him again, her dim eyes half-closed; "Natsu...I want you to always remember...How much I love you.."

Even as the flames licked around thier figures, it was pointless, his flames weren't even warm anymore. It was like they too had given up. Just like Lucy had…

He shook her again a little bit, why was this happening— He'd already watched her die once, he didn't want to watch it again...

She cupped his cheeks with her cold Hands and weakly moved her face to his. He ran his eyes across her face before settling to meet hers, his expression a heavy meloncholic and woeful look.

"Natsu...I…"

And finally, that's when she closed her eyes and her cold lips met his.

He too pressed his mouth against hers, his touch just as delicate, though done on purpose unlike hers that was sullenly by accident. Why couldn't he do anything, why was he still sitting there when she was RIGHT HERE- had a part of him given up already? He felt guilt, and rage, and sympathy, and like he was drowning in the sudden realisation that without her; he was practically nothing. How could he be happy? How could he be anything anymore… He was going to fail at this rate, she was going to die and he was just the idiot that had been useless in saving her. It was unlikely… this...

Though all of his feelings… they were exploding out of him like an aura of wrath; their kiss like an exchange of all the sorrow and resent they felt for this moment in time; everything they felt.

After a few moments, it seemed that Lucy had stopped kissing back... in fact...she stopped moving...

He choked slightly moving his face down hers so that his forehead touched hers, sobbing with no noise; crying a lot heavier. "Lu….L..u…cy…." His grip tightened, grasping her arm as his flames disappeared and he was left sitting in the dark once again; his heart being ripped out of him with every second that passed… this couldn't be ….real…

With that he finally shouted; or for a better word, wailed.

"NO, YOU CAN'T…" He pulled her closer towards him, his next words a whimper; "Please… come back..."


	3. Chapter 3

"We're moving out; everybody steer clear and keep your eyes out for Lucy and Natsu. They could be seriously injured; so if that's the case, Wendy will be back at the Guild. These are SERIOUS assassins; I repeat; they are NOT playing around." Erza Scarlet, a mage that Wendy had respected and looked up to ever since they had meant, she was a woman with the strength of a thousand men and she was beautiful; her red hair gently streaming down her back as she continued to toss out information at the guild standing ahead of her. Not only had she taken down an assassin that had been lurking in the Guild hall down, she had also knocked the bloke unconscious after figuring out who had sent them.

It had been Wendy's suggestion for her to stay back at the guild, after all; she would love to help everyone fight should they need to but just as Carla had pointed out, there was no use in wasting magic on attacks. After all, if anyone got injured, she could heal them a lot quicker with her magic capacity on full strength.

"Gray-sama;" the blue headed water mage piped up, tilting her head to glance up at the dark haired male; his brown eyes furrowed into rough eyes. Gray and Juvia, another two strong mages, even more powerful when they worked together. Wendy dragged her eyes to the pair, her hands knitting together in a nervous manner. As she clung tightly to Carla in her arms, her urgency did nothing but grow as the pit in her gut enlarged that something wasn't right.

"Hey Erza!" Gray bellowed; completely disregarding Juvia's presence, and making everyone in the guild have a minor heart attack; Wendy would be lying if she didn't admit she nearly fell back in surprise.

Erza however, titled her head at the ice mage, a petite smile flashing on her face as her eyes crossed over from Wendy to Gray and Juvia; it seemed as though they had decided to stand quite close together.

"What is it?"

"You seem like you've run into these guys before..."

"I..." The red head paused, something soft and scary lingering in her eyes, Wendy couldn't tell whether or not she imagined it and it also worried her. Erza, stuttering? Was it safe to say that she had come across these assassins herself and was truly concerned about Lucy and Natsu despite their equally powerful strength? Though split up, was it possible that these assassins were high in numbers?

"Our mission is to find Lucy and Natsu; we can concern ourselves of detail after finding them."

Just who were these assassins... And were they after the guild as a whole...?

What was the point in drawing only Lucy and Natsu out? Wendy couldn't help but let her own assumptions wash through her head like a river; every now and then they clashed coming up with more and more questions. She was a lot younger than everyone in the guild, but that just made her more determined to try her best to be as useful and kind as she could. After all, if it were the other way around; Lucy would have demanded redemption and Natsu would have stormed out hours ago.

Even waiting about now was probably a bad idea.

Though with a frown, the ice mage nodded; Wendy knew exactly how he felt. She felt the same after all; the people in their guild were like family; but she, Erza, Gray, Natsu and Lucy had been through a lot as a team and Wendy was safe to say that she treasured those four and the exceeds the most; dismissing all forms of selfishness and keeping them as the honest truth. It was times like this that the slate was wiped clean and all stakes were on the table. Erza was right, at least if they found them; they would know what condition they were in rather than leaving it to their own imagination by thinking the worst.

"Are you all with me?" She nodded, already knowing the answer, Wendy couldn't help but feel a flutter of hope at Ezra's demand for war. "Then lets go!"

The red head girl then pumped her fist, her outfit changing miraculously quick due to her magic ability to have flexibility with her armour.

As if timed; the whole guild, full of wonderful mages charged towards the door, even Romeo who had grown to be around the same age as Wendy herself had vowed to protect the members of the guild.

Eventually they had all poured through the front doors of Fairy Tail; leaving Wendy alone with her exceed, their newly found absence making the room eerie with silence and anticipation.

"What should we do now, child?" The white cat piped up, her head tilting to look at her favourite dragon slayer.

"Do you think they'll be long?" She trusted them all but she couldn't help being concerned. After all, anyone could be in danger, Wendy was probably the safest of them all now.

Wendy crouched gently, her shiny blue hair tickling the back of her neck as it hooked into the collar of her crimson and gold shirt.

"I'm not sure, child. I suppose we will have to wait." Carla replied, letting Wendy set her down onto the floor, glad to have the freedom. However, she tossed Wendy an apologetic face after seeing how disappointed the sky dragon slayer looked.

"Wendy, you know better than I that pink haired boy and his pesky blue tomcat are capable of looking after theirselves and if Lucy happens to get into a pickle herself, you know she can handle that too with those keys of hers." Carla placed her little white paws on the trim of her skirt, a proud look of her face which she would quickly pretend didn't exist if it weren't only Wendy in the room.

"You're right," Wendy exclaimed, standing back up with her arms tight to her sides, "I can't lose faith!" She smiled herself now, glad that she had her well said and closest friend to assure her.

Though right at that moment, Carla's head bobbed and Wendy knew that look better than anyone. Carla had something special about her, something more special than any other exceed as she often caught glimpses of the future. However, they usually weren't comforting glimpses so it was quite probable that this was going to be bad news.

Sinking back down to her knees, Wendy was faced a stricken faced Carla, her eyes wide with only fear.

"What is it?" Wendy asked, "you're scaring me! What did you see?"

The cat blinked, trembling slightly as she outstretched her paw for balance, Wendy's knees going cold from the tiles on the ground.

"Natsu..."

She glanced up at Wendy, those big brown eyes shimmering as Wendy wished she didn't know what was coming next.

"...Dying."


	4. Chapter 4

There was a soft slow clap, a rampant pace of mockery and sarcasm coming from behind the pink haired mage, Natsu merely holding his breath as he had sat for several moments with his now late blonde friend. It was too obvious that she was gone now, yet he still didn't want to accept that it was the last of her.

Though he did nothing but grit his teeth at the voice of her murderer.

"Looks like your Little friend there didn't take my punch too good-" A gentle yet cruel chuckle echoed from nearby, a man in black that hadn't even got the decently to clean his right hand, leaving it all stained red.

Something changed slightly the second the pink mage heard the voice in the silence, like an odd aura flaring up. This guy had done more than just pissed him off, that was obvious by the way that the flames began to gather up back around his body despite his lack of power.

"Is that…. So…?" Natsu growled, ever so slightly flicking his head to the side, glancing back at the murderer; a little deranged if one did not understand the situation. This man had stabbed Lucy right through the chest with his bare arm. And now he was chuckling about it? What kind of sick bastard did that?

"Why don't you follow her example~?" The assassin cooed, his voice like acid honey, making Natsu gag with the smell of bloody iron. This guy must be an idiot if he believed that he could kill Natsu so easily, especially when he was so negatively fired up. Though that sentence just cause his flames to intensify slightly, a new born kind of energy; one gathered by wrath amongst the heart.

Perhaps it was not the best kind of energy to draw from, especially for a mage; but at that point in time, Natsu couldn't really say that he cared.

"Her… Example?" His words were so careful as he glanced back to look at the assassin that had killed Lucy. The murderer who so disrespectfully laughed in the presence of companion. Natsu would make him regret. That was a promise he could never, ever break…

Unfortunately the man's face hidden by a hood, just his mouth visible; Natsu's glare was almost barely visible to the man.

"What? You think you can proof me otherwise? I'm just fulfilling my job," The assassin rotated his body a little as if to point towards Lucy. "Aren't you the one who failed?"

Natsu swallowed at that last sentence, how long had this jerk been standing there?

Fulfilling his job? Who had wanted Lucy murdered? That was one question he would need an answer to before he decimated this damn assassin with his own two hands.

"I'll make you regret that..." The fire tried it's hardest to build, but his energy was as sad as his mood.

"You can try, but I doubt you're even Close to my Level… Anyways, I got half the job done. Considering your reaction, I think I'd rather find another Dragon Slayer."

Dragon Slayer? What in the hell did that have to do with Lucy? Is that why Natsu and Lucy had been led out so far on their own? Was it Natsu who was meant to be killed? That made no sense… half the job? What was the other half?

Complimenting himself, he added, "I thought I did a pretty nice job."

That was easily two on a platter, despite his beg and failure to save Lucy. Had he really lost… her….

He growled ever so slightly, so quiet it had been impossible to hear. But he had said he didn't have to kill Lucy, yet the bastard was standing here boasting to Natsu about how he had killed her.

Natsu's glare was empty as he lowered Lucy's head gently onto the ground; pulling the scarf up to use it as a pillow for her.

"Who sent you?" He wanted to pound this guy's face in, but first he had to know where they came from. It's what Lucy would have done.

"Ha, like I would answer that question-"

Natsu's left hand lit up like a candle, looking at his hand as he flexed it, "You hurt something close to me. So you're going to have to take me on."

"I guess you're right about that." The assassin smirked, looking far too overly relaxed.

"I. Guess. I. Am." His tone was dark.

"Then let's get over with already, I'm getting bored."

Perhaps it was the fact that he was still standing next to Lucy that was making him stall, but the whole time he had been standing; the width of his flames had been growing. And with that, he moved away from his late blonde and practically tackled the other with the widest round house kick. Even if he missed the man, the fire was wide enough to knock him nevertheless. Assassins were tricky, this one seemed well trained and real. Far too advanced.

The Assassin dodged the attack easy and appeared behind Natsu, "Tsk, did no one tell you that you shouldn't fight with emotions?" He chided, "You're just too easy to read… Salamander."

"Dying?!" It took more than that to kill Fairy Tail's salamander didn't it? Surely a bunch of assassins were not too much for Natsu Dragneel; son of the fire dragon.

"Yes... He... He was stabbed from behind, all the way though... His chest..." Oh... Well that was enough to kill anyone.

Wendy's eyes were wide as she listened, her hands absentmindedly clutched to her chest; feeling the patter of her heart beat underneath her tightly wound fists.

"It's going to happen soon?"

"Well the light was similar to now.. Assuming that it is today..." Carla's voice was quiet, practically choking on her words.

Suddenly there was a loud bang on the window, the sound making Wendy squeal. Then she spotted a little blue cat with angelic wings with his face smushed up against the window.

"Carlaaaaa-" Happy moaned at the exceed he had claimed as his true love; his voice cooing gently in the hopes that she would come to his rescue as he began to slide down the window. Carla however, had straightened up,

Wendy knew they couldn't mention a thing about her vision otherwise Happy would flip or break, depending on which of the moods he would take on. Considering his close connection to Natsu, it was most likely he'd whoosh right back out; those pair were one in the same. Wendy couldn't help but laugh; out of nerves she supposed, finding Happy's gentle calling oit to Carla despite his worn out and newly pained state. Though this was good news! Happy was fine! Or so she hoped.

With a swift sky dragon hop, step... And trip, the blue haired girl darted over to the window, yanking at the latch with her petite fingers. She was good at opening the windows, it was often she stayed back late in the afternoon to help Mirajane clean, Wendy was always in charge of making sure locks are shut. Mira was also out there searching, they had all luck on their side as Mira had demonic abilities. It was strange really, Wendy often thought that all demons were evil, but Mira was a wonderful and kind hearted mage; not to mention her figure was stunningly beautiful and Wendy hoped that she would look the same as she grew older.

Finally the window folded open, the blue exceed rising up and hoping onto his feet on the now right up window.

"Aye, Wendy! I come with bad news!" Happy fluttered his wings rather majestically despite his appearance, his eyes glued to Carla inside rather than on the human he was speaking to.

"What is it?" Wendy asked, her voice tiny. Surely Natsu could not be dead... Happy looked too content. Sure he looked worried, but he didn't look like he'd seen his friend be killed.

"Lucy and Natsu! They've been split up fighting a bunch of assassins;" He gave a concerned expression; "Even Natsu was having a hard time…" A look of guilt washed over the cat's face, presumably he was upset about leaving the two mages when they were in the midst of a dangerous battle. But at least they had sent for help.

Wendy quickly flashed a worried look at Carla. If Natsu was having a hard time… did this mean that it was the time that he died?


End file.
